Small Biz Survival

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Small town business idea: task services

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Jack rabbit sitting in an open dirt field.

“Task Rabbit? Oh, I thought you said Jack Rabbit!” Photo by Becky McCray.

I’m always collecting small town business ideas. On Twitter, I saw Scott Balster @scottbalster of Loveland, CO, suggest a small version of two popular labor-exchange services: TaskRabbit and Elance.

TaskRabbit is a task and errand service connection. People list tasks they need done, everything from housecleaning to delivering groceries. Other people sign up to take on the tasks for pay. However, they only cover selected metro areas and outlying suburbs.

Elance is a connection for digital services: designers, writers, developers, programmers. People list tasks they need done. Other people sign up to take on the tasks for pay. Because all the tasks are digital, there are no geographic limits.

Maybe there is a niche in combining both kinds of labor exchange in a larger small town or compact rural region.

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About Becky McCray

Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.

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